One of the Bay Area’s House freshmen was among the region’s top fundraisers in the first quarter of 2013, according to newly filed Federal Election Commission reports.

Rep. Eric Swalwell, D-Pleasanton, raised $262,810 in the first three months of the year, leaving him with $222,932 cash on hand as of March 31.

On its face, that’s more even than the $207,030 that House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-San Francisco, collected in individual contributions to her campaign committee. But Pelosi also transferred in more than $136,000 from her Nancy Pelosi Victory Fund, which itself raised $671,400 in the first quarter. (Now THAT’s some serious scratch; don’t mess with the big dog, Congressman Swalwell.)

Still, Swalwell’s first-quarter fundraising outstripped that of every other Bay Area House member including Mike Honda, D-San Jose, who raised $214,000 while already in full campaign mode due to the challenge posed by fellow Democrat Ro Khanna.

Swalwell might also face a fellow Democrat in 2014: state Senate Majority Leader Ellen Corbett, D-San Leandro, who like Swalwell had hoped to succeed Pete Stark in the 15th Congressional District but chose not to run against him last year. Corbett, who’s favored by many of the same local Democrats who had backed Stark in 2012, raised $16,201 in the first quarter of this year and had $114,963 cash on hand as of March 31.

Here’s a readout of the rest of the greater Bay Area delegation’s first-quarter haul, looking only at their principal campaign committees:

With 18 months to go before the November 2014 election, Swalwell is looking formidable.
Only a bit over 3 months in office and this “rookie” isn’t looking like the old school insiders are gonna roll over him. Not even with their “team member” Corbett.

Those party insiders still seem to be living in that 2012 theme, where once the team gets going, the citizens will follow them, just like they’ve been doing for decades.

Ooops, it seems the public wasn’t quite as satisfied with the old order as those insiders kept telling themselves. In fact, they’d been talking to themselves for so long they actually believed the public thought they were great. NOT true.
And NOT true in November 2014.

Swalwell looks like the one in favor now, not the old guard trying to squeeze their way back in.
The old politics has been turned on its head by the “top two” election process.

Smart bet would be for Swalwell to beat Corbett in the November election. The people, the voters, can now go around the machine. Top Two combined with social media and internet communication has made the entrenched look downright backwards.